Father's Day doesn't have to be all about the grill. It can be, but there are other enticing ways to spend dad's special day.

From barbecue to bowling and breweries, the Midstate is speckled with enticing, manly options. Here are several of my favorite eat-in or take-out places to spend time with family, friends and fathers.

Why is What If West With a Twist on my list? Location, location, location. The Coliseum, an entertainment megaplex, is a Father's Day feast of activities. The restaurant is under the same roof as bowling, 10,000 square foot arcade and downstairs sports bar.

Activities are enjoyed with or without the kids in tow. After the games, find solace at this quieter, fine dining venue especially seated on sofas facing flat screens at the upper-tiered lounge. Treat your man to grass-fed, char grilled filet mignon ($30.95) topped with a teetering mega-crab meaty cake.

There are plenty of pasta options but the one that stands out is a rare find, cioppino ($25.95.) Cioppino is a fish stew. This one is chock full of shrimp, mussels, scallops, clams and white fish fillet in spicy, tomato sauce set over pasta. No matter what he orders, dad will be well fed and happy here, and so will the kids.

If dad wants to grill on his special day, let him. However make sure the sausages, fresh or smoked come from family-owned Schmidt's Sausage Shop now along Eisenhower Boulevard in Swatara Twp. German-Hungarian recipes have been passed down for more than 50 years so let's face it, they must be good.

Stuffed and hand tied, garlicky, well-seasoned fresh pork sausages taste wonderful and well-seasoned either hot off the grill or smoked, then sautéed and wedged into a roll with peppers, onions and house made, barrel-cured sauerkraut. Grab some dogs too while you're here.

Mild or spicy hot dogs are in the case. Don't leave without a pound of smoky, heat-scented bacon, which is dried cured on the premises.

Snitz Creek Brewery in Lebanon doesn't have flat screen TV's to distract from family time on the deck or in the wood accented, fly-fishing themed dining room. Local-focused, bar menu doesn't get complicated nor does it need to be fancy at this low-key, neighborly brewpub.

Familiar ingredients pop off the menu like neighbor's names in a school directory; one-quarter pound of old fashioned, deep golden and extra crunchy Shuey's pretzels with dipping mustard ($3), hummus from Sphinx Deli nearby at the Lebanon Farmer's Market ($6), all tackle trophy, chargrilled burgers made from Laudermilch Meats ($5 and $9). Add Lebanon bologna sandwiches ($6) made on pretzel rolls and opera fudge hand made by Wertz candies in Lebanon to the list.

Smooth finished handcrafted brews such as namesake (Schnitz is the PA Dutch word for apple) Apple-Weise wheat is the go-to refreshingly summer beer with its ghostly apple and honey trail.

Snitz Creek Brewery seems comparatively calm in comparison to expansive, always packed, Troegs Brewing Company. The food at Troegs has consistently gotten better since the brewery first opened with a few snacks.

Now, the Snack Bar takes over the whole back end of the building. No one can eat just one handful of the huge, portion of rosemary popcorn ($3.) It's better than movie theater popcorn with its blast of herb and nutty brown butter components. But don't stop at the popcorn, while you're up at the counter make sure to get dad an order of trendy poutine fries with gravy and cheese curds ($11).

This house favorite is made with fresh cut fries, mushroom duck gravy, cheese curds and served with plum catsup. Grass fed beef patty on house potato roll ($12), fried oyster and pork belly po 'boy ($12) and charcuterie of house cured meats ($11) are sure to please pop as well.

No dad deserves to miss out on Road Hawg BBQ. St. Louis ribs, 1/3 rack, $6.25, ½ rack, $9 or whole rack, $18 are expertly prepared. Candy-sweet, heat rubbed crust locks in smoky-pink meat lining rib bones. Feminine size fingers of baby backs peel off rather than fall completely off bones with moderate, tooth-tender resistance. If you order the baked beans ($3.75) you'd think you'd died and gone to Road Hawg heaven. Pulled pork threads through assorted bean sizes, but it's the brown sugar-y molasses- simmered sauce that seals this side into memory.

For a painless meal out, Black N Bleu in Hampden Twp. pampers the palate with a soothing collection of casual and classy dishes. Scout out this discreet find along the Carlisle Pike.

Entire, extended families fit into elongated, comfy booths facing the open kitchen. American menu covers the gamut from full meal to fast bite. Make a meal out of black angus sliders on squishy, potato rolls ($8) and specialty black 'n' bleu pizza ($12) crowded with blackened chicken pieces, blue cheese, onions and tomatoes.

You could also chomp into two-handed fat and juicy house burger ($9) weighed down by melted cheddar cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato and onion or a father favorite, open faced slow roasted prime rib sandwich ($10.)

Little Black Truck has morphed into a permanent home at Official BBQ & Burgers in Swatara Twp. The neighborhood locale is out of sight from anything but that doesn't stop customers from seeking this place out. Short and focused menu features well-made items.

Signature wings six for $6 are rubbed with special piquant sauce, and then slowly smoked. Homemade barbecue sauce gets slathered over the wings before they are grilled and sprinkled one more time with special seasonings. Outer skin is crisp and veil-thin and interior chicken meat tastes spicy and moist.

Another reason customers have been seeking out this clandestine find are the big oversized ½ pound Angus burgers ($7). The patties are as full sized as grill-toasted buttered buns. Thick, rounded patties bulge out and around the bun like inner tubes. My burger had crown of melted extra sharp cheddar cheese. Dill pickles, pickled jalapeno, ketchup, mustard and mayonnaise oozed out with every firm grip of the burger. Crisp bacon adds the final wisp of crisp, smoky flavor.